Sayyid Qutab and Islamic Activism: a Translation and Critical Analysis of Social Justice in Islam (Social, Economic and Political Studies of the Middle East)

This work provides a translation of a book by Sayyid Qutb, a forerunners of the current "resurgence" of Islam. Its author was a prominent Islamic activist in Egypt in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and was jailed and eventually executed for his activities. Written in 1948, "Social Justice in Islam" went through five further editions, each revised in a manner reflecting Sayyid Qutb's increasingly radical views. This text translates the last edition and also provides the alternative readings from the earlier editions, so that the reader can trace the development of the author's thinking. The introduction provides a brief bibliography of the author and an analysis of the changes in his thinking reflected in this book.